This year the Two....no, the Three Guys with PhDs attended HeroesCon, and they had a table there in the middle of Artists Alley. Andy Kunka, Andy Wolverton, and Derek Royal were there to check out the action, rummage through the dollar bins, search for new and interesting titles, talk with creators, get their books signed, and just generally enjoy the fun and camaraderie. On each of the three days of the con, Friday (June 19th) through Sunday (June 21st), they made it a point to record segments ...
Jun 23, 2015•1 hr 29 min
On this episode of The Comics Alternative Interviews, Derek has a great time talking with Tillie Walden, the author of a brand new book from Avery Hill Publishing, The End of Summer. This is her debut graphic novel, and, in fact, her conversation with Derek is the very first time she's been on a podcast. (Yet another Comics Alternative exclusive!) On the show, Tillie talks about the origins of her story, her process of creation, and the unlikely events that led to her first publication. The End ...
Jun 19, 2015•54 min
The Two Guys with PhDs are back for another Publisher Spotlight, and this time they turn their attention to recent releases from AdHouse Books. On this episode, they look at the publisher's 2015 catalog (so far), but first Derek talks briefly with AdHouse's founder and publisher, Chris Pitzer. He gives the lowdown on the origins of the press, how he translated his designer skills into publishing acumen, the process of artist acquisition, and some of his most notable (and unlikely) publishing suc...
Jun 17, 2015•2 hr 12 min
The Comics Alternative is excited to have Rick Geary back on the show. The guys had last talked to him two years ago, after the publication of A Treasury of Victorian Murder Compendium, Vol. 1, and now Rick is returning to the podcast to discuss his brand new book, Louise Brooks: Detective (NBM). Although similar in tone to his historical murder mysteries, this is a very different kind of narrative for Rick. Here he uses the biography of silent film star, Louise Brooks, as a springboard for a fi...
Jun 15, 2015•1 hr 2 min
Once again, Derek is back at his local comics shop, Collected Comics and Games in Plano, TX, to talk with customers and shop employees about comics culture. This month the topic was supposed to be summer movies and comics, with people chiming in on the recent releases of Avengers: Age of Ultron and Mad Max: Fury Road, as well as the upcoming Ant-Man and Fantastic Four. However, there was only one of the on-location regulars who showed up this month, Shea Hennum, and much like Derek, he wasn't in...
Jun 12, 2015•1 hr 16 min
This week on the podcast, Derek and Andy W. discuss three new and very different titles. They begin with a narrative based in reality, Mike's Place: A True Story of Love, Blues, and Terror in Tel Aviv, written by Jack Baxter and Joshua Faudem, with art by Koren Shadmi (First Second). This is the story of an American who travels to Israel to make a documentary, teams up with an Israeli film student, and then learns firsthand both the promises and the dangers of the conflicted culture. Mike's Plac...
Jun 10, 2015•1 hr 47 min
This month on The Comics Alternative's webcomics show, Andy and Derek check out three intriguing titles. As they usually do, they begin by looking at two current and ongoing titles. They get the ball rolling with Hans Rickheit's Ectopiary, This is a surreal story of discovery involving a young girl, Dale, whose family life isn't the most ideal. Sent to live with her aunt and uncle, she tries to come to grips with her parents' precarious state and does so through a series of unlikely discoveries ...
Jun 08, 2015•1 hr 25 min
We're in the opening days of June, so that means it's time for another look at the Previews catalog. At the beginning of every month, the Two Guys like to take a gander at the current Previews, flipping through its many pages and highlighting those upcoming releases that really capture their attention. And even if there are comics that neither Derek nor Andy W. plans on getting himself, if they think it's interesting enough for listeners, then they'll mention those titles as well. As with the Ma...
Jun 03, 2015•2 hr 11 min
While Derek attended this year's Fan Expo Dallas, he had the opportunity to talk with Peter Bagge not once, but twice! On the Saturday of the con Peter was kind enough to sit down for a lengthy interview -- about 30 minutes -- in-between fans, commissions, and signings. Although their back-and-forth was substantial, there were subject matters that they didn't get to cover on that first day. So they decided to follow up with another interview on Sunday. What you'll hear in this podcast episode is...
Jun 02, 2015•1 hr 11 min
Fan Expo Dallas was held May 29-31, and this year Derek was there in Artists Alley talking with a variety of creators. Some of those he spoke with are famous names and individuals who have been on the show before. Others were new to him and, and Derek used the opportunity to introduce himself and Comics Alternative listeners to their fascinating works. He begins by talking with two artists who have spoken with him at various cons in the past, Robert Wilson IV and Joe Eisma. The latter shares his...
Jun 01, 2015•1 hr 19 min
On this interview show, Derek and Andy W. have a fun time talking with Tom Neely and Keenan Marshall Keller. The first trade volume of their series, The Humans, recently came out from Image Comics, and next week the narrative arc will continue with issue #5, in which the simian bikers make their drug run in L.A. Although every issue of The Humans is filled with action and dynamic art, this upcoming installment is particularly energetic, complete with chase scenes, road fights, blown-off faces, p...
May 29, 2015•1 hr 33 min
On this episode of The Comics Alternative podcast, Derek and Andy W. discuss four new titles. They begin with Ryan K. Lindsay, Eric Zawadzki, and Sebastian Piriz's Headspace (IDW Publishing). This was originally an eight-issue digital series published by MonkeyBrain between March 2014 and April 2015. A law enforcement officer, Shane, finds himself in a surreal land with no memory of how he got there nor any idea how to leave. He eventually discovers that he is inside the mind of a violent crimin...
May 27, 2015•1 hr 45 min
On this episode of the monthly manga show, Derek and Shea discuss the recently published Henshin, by Ken Niimura (Image Comics), and Katsuhiro Otomo’s classic Akira (Kodansha Comics). They begin with Henshin, a thirteen-story collection from the artist behind I Kill Giants (and written by Joe Kelly). Shea points out that it’s difficult to find much information on Niimura, as most of his work has been published in either Japan or in Spain. But Henshin — which means “transformation” in Japanese —-...
May 26, 2015•1 hr 30 min
Andy and Derek are pleased to have as their guest on The Comics Alternative the artist who has done more than anyone to help us understand comics, Scott McCloud. He has just concluded an exhausting world tour -- traveling all over the United States and Europe, and then wrapping up at this year's TCAF -- and the Two Guys were able to catch him during a breather and talk with him about his latest book, The Sculptor (First Second). They begin by asking him about the reception of his new graphic nov...
May 22, 2015•1 hr 31 min
This week on The Comics Alternative, the Two Guys with PhDs are back with another Publisher Spotlight episode, this time focusing on the spring 2015 releases from Conundrum Press. They begin the show by doing something they've never done before: interviewing the publisher of the press they're about to spotlight. Derek talks with Andy Brown briefly about his founding of Conundrum, its evolution into a comics-only publisher, the many roles he plays at the press, the kind of creators he works with,...
May 20, 2015•2 hr 6 min
Derek is back at his local shop, Collected Comics and Games in Plano, TX, and this month the topic is open and general comics talk. Anything goes, and over the coarse of the conversation, Derek discovers that anything does go in talking with the shop's customers. Joining him for this free-flowing exchange are regulars Shea, Craig, Matt, and Chris, and the discussion topics are wide-ranging. They begin with a conversation on the relative disappearance of westerns and war comics as a popular genre...
May 15, 2015•1 hr 22 min
This week on the their weekly review show, Derek and Andy W. discuss three new books that are definitely worth checking out. They begin with Pénélope Bagieu's Exquisite Corpse from First Second. This may be the first English-language publication for Bagieu (the guys aren't certain about this), and it's a great introduction from one of France's current popular creators. It's a romantic comedy with a sophisticated premise and an unexpected twist at the end. In fact, it's the narrative's quick wrap...
May 13, 2015•1 hr 48 min
It's time for another episode in The Comics Alternative's monthly webcomics series, and for May the Two Guys with PhDs discuss three must-read titles. They begin as they usually do by looking at two current and ongoing webcomics, and this time they're Christina Strain and Jayd Aït-Kaci's The Fox Sister and Ben Fleuter's Derelict. Both of these began in 2011, and even though the intentions were to update them weekly, the creators of these titles have had to pause occasionally or slow down the fre...
May 08, 2015•1 hr 35 min
It’s the beginning of May, so that means it’s time for another Previews show. As they do every month, the Two Guys with PhDs Talking about Comics carefully go through the latest Previews catalog highlighting many of the upcoming titles that catch their interests and are worth checking out. As Derek and Andy W. point out, this particular issue of the catalog is chock-full of intriguing solicitations, so much so that this turns out to be one of the longest Previews episodes the guys have ever disc...
May 06, 2015•2 hr 22 min
or Free Comic Book Day, Derek visits his local comic book shop, Collected Comics and Games in Plano, TX. There he talks with a variety of customers -- many of whom have been on the shop before, some who have not -- as well as creators featuring their works at the shop. Once such creator is Hunter S. Zombie, the writer of Stillborn: The First Zombie. He talks with Derek about his first book, his current work on the second, his relationship with and support of George Romero, and the travails of wo...
May 04, 2015•1 hr 29 min
It's a semi-tradition that when the Eisner Award nominations are announced, Derek and Andy are there to discuss them. So on this special episode of The Comics Alternative, the guys get together to deliberate over this year's nominees, what kind of patterns they discern, and what surprise choices there may be. Joining them on the show is noted comics journalist and former Eisner Award-winner, Tom Spurgeon. Together they look over the list of nominees that was released just last week and try to fi...
May 01, 2015•1 hr 17 min
Beginning in April, The Comics Alternative will be presenting a new monthly show devoted exclusively to manga. Derek will be joined by Shea Hennum, a manga aficionado and longtime friend of the podcast, to discuss both new and older titles. In this inaugural episode, Shea and Derek begin by laying out their agenda and describing the format of the show. Around the last half of every month, they will discuss two manga titles, one of which will in some way be new. (The guys define "new" as a first-...
Apr 30, 2015•1 hr 44 min
Occasionally, Derek and Andy like to devote an episode to a particular publisher, looking at the recent or seasonal releases and providing a snapshot of the kind of books they publish. So for this week, the Two Guys discuss the spring publications from Koyama Press, a Toronto-based small press founded in 2007 by Annie Koyama. This is a publisher that the guys deeply appreciate but have discussed little on the show. (They reviewed Renee French's Baby Bjornstrand in November of last year, and ther...
Apr 29, 2015•1 hr 24 min
On this episode of the interview show, Derek and Gene talk with the strange minds behind the even stranger title, Punks: The Comic, Joshua Hale Fialkov and Kody Chamberlain. Their first trade collection, Punks: The Comic, Vol. 1: Nutpuncher, has just come out this month from Image Comics, and Josh and Kody are ready to spill the beans about their secrets to humorous success. They talk with the guys about the genesis of Punks, how they come up with story ideas, their collaborative process, and th...
Apr 27, 2015•1 hr 21 min
Craig Yoe is back for his fourth interview appearance on The Comics Alternative, and this time he has two wacky new books to share with everyone, both from IDW Publishing and Yoe! Books. First, he talks with Derek and Andy about Milt Gross' New York, a "lost" graphic novel that was originally published in 1939 to capitalize on that year's New York World's Fair. Copies of the original paperback are very difficult to find, but Craig was able to get his hands on one -- thanks to eBay -- and then wo...
Apr 24, 2015•1 hr 28 min
On this episode of the podcast, Andy and Derek discuss two thought-provoking books that challenge the way we look at sequential narratives. First, they explore François Schuiten and Benoît Peeters's The Leaning Girl, the first edition of the Franco-Belgian series, Les Cités obscures, currently being translated and published in English by Alaxis Press. The guys begin by giving a little background of The Obscure Cities, its spotty publication history in the US, and Alaxis Press' attempts to bring ...
Apr 22, 2015•58 min
Derek is back at his local comic book shop, Collected Comics and Games in Plano, TX, and this month he's talking with customers and employees about returns. This is not about customers being unhappy with their purchases and then coming back into the shop to demand their money back. By "returns," Derek is referring to the various titles, characters, and events that are making reappearances after years of silence or of being out of currency. This is an appropriate topic because over the past year ...
Apr 17, 2015•1 hr 17 min
This week Derek and Andy discuss three recent titles, each of which is part of a larger series. First, they review the third in Alan Moore and Kevin O'Neill's Nemo trilogy, Nemo: River of Ghosts (Top Shelf). The guys begin their discussion by looking at the series as a whole -- even placing the trilogy within the larger context of Moore's League of Extraordinary Gentlemen universe -- and then exploring the accessibility of the text as a singular narrative. River of Ghosts certainly needs to stan...
Apr 15, 2015•1 hr 18 min
At last weekend's Sumter Comic Arts Symposium, Andy sat down with Tim Seeley in front of a live con audience and talked with him about his various comics, including Grayson, Batman Eternal, Effigy, Revival, and Sundowners. Along with Ray Fawkes (not part of this interview), Tim was one of the special guests at this first-ever Sumter event, which is described on the Sumter county's website as “an event like no other. This fun-filled event celebrates some of the most exciting and innovative creato...
Apr 14, 2015•46 min
Derek and Andy W. are back for another of their monthly webcomics episodes, and for April they discuss three exciting titles, two currently ongoing webcomics and one completed series. They begin with Kristen Gudsnuk's Henchgirl, the story of a young villain trying to find her way (and her fortune) in a world of super-powered crime. However, her heart and her relationships keep getting in the way, making her a unlikely and often-torn protagonist. As the Two Guys point out, this is more of a relat...
Apr 13, 2015•1 hr 38 min
